Apparatus for wrapping articles

ABSTRACT

THE WRAPPING APPARATUS COMPRISES A PAIR OF SPACED ENDLESS BELTS EACH HAVING RESILIENT GRIPPING MEMBERS SO THAT OPPOSED GRIPPING MEMBERS GRIP AN ARTICLE THEREBETWEEN AND MOVE A SERIES OF ARTICLES UPWARDLY BETWEEN THE BELTS ALONG A VERTICAL FOLDING PATH. A WRAPPER BLANK IS POSITIONED OVER THE TOP FACE AND AT LEAST TWO SIDE FACES OF EACH ARTICLE AND THE ARTICLE IS THEN MOVED BETWEEN A PAIR OF GRIPPING MEMBERS. AS THE ARTICLE IS MOVED ALONG THE FOLDING PATH VARIOUS FOLDING ELEMENTS ENGAGE PORTIONS OF THE WRAPPER BLANK ENTENDING OVER FACES OF THE ARTICLE TO MOVE THESE PORTIONS AGAINST FACES OF THE ARTICLE TO COMPLETELY WRAP THE BLANK AROUND THE ARTICLE. THE ELEMENTS FOR FOLDING PORTIONS OF THE WRAPPER BLANK ARE MOUNTED ON THE APPARATUS FOR MOVEMENT LATERALLY INTO THE FOLDING PATH AND IN THE DIRECTION OF TRAVEL OF THE ARTICLES. THE FOLDING ELEMENTS MAY ALSO BE MOVABLY MOUNTED ON THE GRIPPING MEMBERS AND CAMMED INTO FOLDING RELATIONSHIP WITH THE WRAPPER BLANK PORTIONS AT PREDETERMINED TIMES. AS THE WRAPPED ARTICLES EMERGE FROM THE UPPER END OF THE FOLDING PATH EACH ARTICLE IS PUSHED LATERALLY THEREFROM ONTO A CONVEYOR BELT.

Oct 1971 E. WALTIHER APPARATUS FOR WRAPPING ARTICLES 6 Sheets-Sheet 1Filed April 25, 1969 ATTORNEY 1971 E. WALTHER APPARATUS FOR WRAPPINGARTICLES 6 SheetsSheet Filed April 25, 1969 FIG 2a ENVI-LNTOIR ERHARDTWALTHER ATTOIRN v Oct. 12, 1971 E. WALTHER 3,61L675 APPARATUS FORWRAPPING ARTICLES Filed April 25, 1969 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 uwmmn ERHARDTWALTHER ATTORNEY Oct. 12, 1971 E. WALTHER 3,61 L675 APPARATUS FORWRAPPING ARTICLES Filed April 25, 1969 6 Sheets-Sheet 4.

uNvEN%nn ERHARDT WALTHER ATTORNEY Oct. 12, 1971 E. WALTHER W W APPARATUSFOR WRAPPING ARTICLES Filed April 25, 1969 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 I I3 uwvmmnERHARDT WALTHER M WW M ATTQRNIEY United States lU.S. Cl. 53-224 7 ClaimsABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The wrapping apparatus comprises a pair ofspaced endless belts each having resilient gripping members so thatopposed gripping members grip an article therebetween and move a seriesof articles upwardly between the belts along a vertical folding path. Awrapper blank is positioned over the top face and at least two sidefaces of each article and the article is then moved between a pair ofgripping members. As the article is moved along the folding path variousfolding elements engage portions of the wrapper blank extending overfaces of the article to move these portions against faces of the articleto completely wrap the blank around the article. The elements forfolding portions of the wrapper blank are mounted on the apparatus formovement laterally into the folding path and in the direction of travelof the articles. The folding elements may also be movably mounted on thegripping members and cammed into folding relationship with the wrapperblank portions at predetermined times. As the wrapped articles emergefrom the upper end of the folding path each article is pushed laterallytherefrom onto a conveyor belt.

The present invention relates to the wrapping of articles on all sideswith wrapping blanks, more particularly, to a wrapping apparatus inwhich the article being wrapped is conveyed continuously along astraight folding path.

A wide variety of articles of all shapes and sizes have been wrapped bymachines with wrapping blanks comprising sheet material which does notspring back when folded but remains in the folded position. Suchmaterial may include but is not limited to tinfoil, cellophane, andlaminated plastic material sheeting. Such wrapping materials arecommonly used in the candy and confection industry. In one form ofwrapping apparatus the article is moved upwardly by a ram against awrapper blank which is held in the horizontal position and then carriedalong by the upwardly moving article. The article and wrapper is movedthrough a folding box so that the wrapper blank becomes positioned overthe top and at least some side faces of the article with portions of theblank extending downwardly. Various types of folding members are thenemployed to fold the protruding portions of the wrapper blank againstthe bottom and end faces of the article. The article with the partiallypositioned wrapper blank is retained in movable grippers mounted on theperiphery of a turn-table. The turn-table is moved intermittentlythrough a number of stations in which the necessary folding operationsof the protruding portions of the blank are performed while theturn-table is stationary. The completely wrapped articles are ejectedfrom the grippers in the last stationary position of the turn-table.

Such a wrapping apparatus with a turn-table has the disadvantage thatall folding operations must be performed while the article and theturntable are stationary. Thus, the different folding operations must beperformed at the same time and within a period of time whose duration isas short as possible. This time limitation adversely aifects the qualityof the folds. Further, the starting and stopping of the relatively heavyturn-table requires acceleration and deceleration of a considerablemass. In addition, the spacing between the various folding stationsnecessitates providing a relatively large amount of structural elementsand drive means. This space requirement of the entire wrapping apparatusis particularly disadvantageous should it be desired to automate theoperation.

Another form of apparatus which has been used for folding the protrudingedge portions of the wrapper blanks comprises a horizontal conveyorchain having movable gripper jaws between which the articles havingwrapper blanks partially positioned thereon are retained. The chain isoperated intermittently and the articles are positioned between the jawswhen the chain is stationary. A suitable control arrangement must beprovided for opening and closing the jaws. This form of apparatus hasthe disadvantages described above for the turn-table wrapping apparatus.

Another form of wrapping apparatus comprised a horizontal rake-likemember provided with opposed gripping jaws between which the partiallywrapped article is inserted. The member is then intermittently moved toadvance the articles to the next folding operation. The gripping jaws onthe rake are opened to release the article at the next succeedingfolding station and the member returns to its original position to pickup another article. The rake-like member may be pivotally mounted so asto swing back and forth between two adjacent stations. This wrappingapparatus, however, had all of the disadvantages of the wrappingapparatus as described above. The intermittent advance and withdrawal ofthe rake-like member substantially limits the output of the wrappingmachine.

It is therefore the principal object of the present invention to providea novel and improved apparatus for wrapping articles with a wrapperblank.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an apparatusfor wrapping articles wherein the articles are continuously advanced inone direction while being subjected to the folding operations.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a Wrappingapparatus wherein a wrapper blank is positioned over the top and atleast some of the sides of the article and the article and wrapper blankthen conveyed continuously through operations to fold the extendedportions of the wrapper blank around the other faces of the article.

According to the present invention, the folding apparatus may comprise aconveyor consisting of a pair of spaced endless belts which define afolding path therebetween. Both belts are provided with opposedresiliently mounted gripping members to engage opposed sides of thearticle which is to be wrapped. The endless belts are positionedvertically so that the folding path is vertical. At the lower end of thefolding path means are provided for positioning a wrapper blank on thetop face and on at least some of the side faces of the article so thatportions of the wrapper blank protrude outwardly of the article. Thearticles with the wrapper are uniformly spaced along the conveyor andmove in a direction which is transverse to the bottom faces of thearticles. A number of folding elements are mounted along the foldingpath in order to fold the extending portions of the wrapper blanksaround the articles. The folding elements are driven so as to movelaterally into the folding path in a direction transverse to themovement of the conveyed articles and at the same time transverse to thebottom faces of the articles in the direction of their travel. Thefolding elements are positioned so as to move behind an article towardthe bottom face thereof. The number of folding elements corresponds innumber to the portions. of the wrapper blank extending over the sides ofthe article which are to be folded against the article. At the upper endof the folding path there are positioned means for withdrawing thewrapped articles from the conveyor.

In a modification, the folding elements are movably mounted on theconveyor means and stationary cam means are engageable with the foldingelements so as to move the folding elements into the folding path.

The wrapper blank is initially so positioned around the article thatedges of the blank extend rearwardly or opposite to the direction oftravel to the article as it continuously moves through the conveyor. Asthe articles are continuously moved through the conveyor the foldingmembers are simultaneously moved laterally into the folding path and inthe direction of movement of the articles so as to fold the extendedwrapper portions against the faces.

Folding elements are also mounted along the folding path to fold theportions of the wrapper blanks protruding laterally over the end facesof the article.

The various intermittently movable components of the wrapping apparatussuch as the folding elements may be driven through a linkage system fromthe power source for driving the conveyor means.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparentfrom the accompanying description when taken in conjunction with thefollowing drawings, which are exemplary, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of the wrapping apparatus of thepresent invention;

FIG. 2a is a front elevation view showing the stages of a foldingoperation of an article conveyed through the apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 2b is a series of top plan views of the stages of the foldingoperations illustrated in FIG. 2a;

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view but in enlarged scale of the wipingbrush employed in the present apparatus;

FIG. 4 is an overall perspective view of the lower folding membersemployed in the apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the upper portion of the apparatusof FIG. 1 but with various components not being shown for purposes ofclarity;

FIG. 6 is a front elevational view of a modification of structure tomove the two lower folding members of the apparatus of the presentinvention;

. FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of the apparatus of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a series of perspective views showing stages of a modifiedfolding operation according to the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a front elevational view of a portion of a modified apparatusfor performing the folding operation shown in FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a simplified elevational view of a portion of )tgie apparatusof FI'G. 9 and taken in the direction 0 Proceeding next to the drawingswherein like reference symbols indicate the same parts throughout thevarious views a specific embodiment and modifications of the presentinvention will be described in detail.

' As may be seen in FIG. 1 the folding apparatus of the presentinvention is indicated generally at 10 and comprises two oppositeendless conveyor belts 11 which are supported upon upper pulleys 12,lower pulleys 13 and side pulleys 14. The belts 11 are positioned in avertical plane with their spaced parallel vertical reaches defining afolding path 15.

Uniformly spaced along the conveyor belts 11 are gripping jaws 16 and 17which protrude laterally outwardly of their respective belts. Detachablymounted on the jaws are foam rubber pads or drivers 18 to grip articlestherebetween during movement through the folding path. The resilientnature of the drivers 18 equalizes any dilferences in the widths of thearticles being wrapped. The jaws 16 and 17 have portions thereofextending laterally into the vertical parallel grooves :19 and 20 on theface of the apparatus 10 so as to prevent any outward movement of 1 4the conveyor belts 11 transversely to the direction of travel.

The gripping jaws 16 and 17 have folding members 21 and 22 slidablymounted thereon for horizontal movement when the gripping jaws aremoving upwardly along the folding path 15. The folding members areprovided with rollers or followers 23 which move upwardly in cam grooves24 and 25 mounted on the front face 26 of the apparatus. The previouslymentioned vertical grooves 19 and 20 are also carried in the front face26. After the folding members 50 and 55 have performed their functionson an article, the left folding element 21 is first projected andsubsequently thereafter the right folding element 22 is projected, whilethe left folding element 21 has only already been withdrawn. Thus, asthe gripping jaws move upwardly along the folding path the foldingmembers 21 and 22 will be moved horizontally in response to the camgrooves to carry out folding operations as will be subsequentlydescribed.

The upper pulleys 12 are mounted on horizontal shafts 27 and 28extending outwardly from the front face 26 of the apparatus.

The feeding arrangement for the articles G which are to be moved throughthe folding path is located below the lower pulley 13 and outwardlythereof. This feeding arrangement comprises a conveyor belt .30 trainedaround a reversing pulley 31 and has a horizontal upper reach upon whichthe incoming articles G are supported. The reversing pulley 31 is alsomounted on the front face 26 of the apparatus.

A lifting ram 32 is mounted in the housing of the apparatus below thefolding passage .15 and is movable vertically in both directions. Theram 32 is shown in greater detail in FIG. 3 and has a longitudinalpassage 33 therein which is connected to a source of a vacuum. Byapplying a vacuum to the upper face of the ram 32 the article G will beprevented from flying oif upwardly and will be retained thereon untilthe article is gripped between a pair of gripping members at the lowerend of the folding path.

A push-in lever 34 which is displaceable transversely with respect tothe conveyor 30 is operable to transfer the articles G from the upperreach of the conveyor belt 30 into the lifting ram 32. A plate 35 havingan opening 36 which corresponds to the shape of the article G ispositioned in the path of movement of the ram 32.

The wrapping material which is to be wrapped around the articles G issupplied in the form of a web from a web supply which is mounted upon asupply roll 39. The supply roll 39 together with a feeding roll 40supplies the wrapping material onto the plate 35. The feed roll 40 isalso constructed as a cutting roll and partially separates the endlessweb into wrapper blanks H of the desired length. A roller 41 alsorotates continuously and functions to tension the web and feed the webto a swinging feeding lever 42 carrying a frictional engagement member43 which is lined with rubber and which engages in its forward movementthe partially separated web to separate the partially separated blanksfrom each holder. The separated blank is moved onto the plate 35 overthe opening 36 so as to be positioned over the lifting ram 32.

Positioned above the plate opening 36 and in the path of movement of theram 32 is a Wipe-on brush 45 as shown in greater detail in FIG. 3. Thebristles of the brush are substantially horizontal and are positioned soas to form a space which has substantially the same outline as thearticle G. The brush is provided with an extension 46 which extendsupwardly into the lower portion of the folding path 1 5. This brushextension functions to hold the downwardly protruding edge portions ofthe wrapper blank as the article is being fed to the conveyor. Thisfunction will be described in greater detail when the operation of theapparatus is described.

The article and the wrapper blank is conveyed along the folding paththrough four folding stations. As the articles move upwardly through thefolding passage at a constant speed the portions of the wrapper blankare progressively folded with the folding being completed at the upperend of the folding path. In the embodiment of the wrapping apparatusbeing described the wrapper blank is positioned over the top surface andthe four side faces of the article as the article and a wrapper blankpass upwardly through the wipe-on brush.

The first folding station comprises a folding member or side folder 50which is resiliently mounted on a lever 51 secured on the end of a shaft52 extending horizontally out from the front face 26 of the wrapperapparatus. The shaft 52 is movable both axially and rotatably. As theshaft 52 moves laterally inwardly toward the apparatus front face theside folder is moved laterally into the folding path of the article andunder the article which is being continuously moved upwardly. Thepivotal movement of the shaft 52 in a counter-clockwise direction at thesame time causes the side folder 50 to approach the bottom face of thearticle.

The second folding station comprises side folder 55 which is mountedupon a lever 56 extending from shaft 57 as may be seen in FIG. 4. Theapparatus for controlling the movements of side folders '50 and .55 isbest seen in FIG. 4. A connecting rod 58 is connected to the shaft 52 bymeans of a fork 53 and swings in a vertical plane during thelongitudinal movement of shaft 52 which is driven by shaft 59. Thisswinging or pivotable movement of connected rod 58 rotates the shaft 52and the side folder 150 is moved upwardly, when it is pulled to theright side in FIG. 4 by shaft 59. The second side folder 55 acts in thesame manner. The shaft 57 which carries the side folder 55 is rotated byconnecting rod 60 and the shaft 61 produces the axial movement of shaft57 by a coupling linkage.

The third and fourth folding stations comprise the horizontal movementof the folding members 21 and 22 under control of the cam tracks '24, 25as the followers 23- move vertically upwardly therethrough. For thethird folding station the folding member 21 is moved horizontally intothe folding path 15 after the article and wrapper has been acted upon bythe side folder 55. Subsequently, in the fourth folding station foldingmember 22 is moved horizontally into the folding path 15 to complete thefolding operation.

Upon completion of the folding operation the wrapped article is conveyedupwardly against a resiliently mounted stop member 65 which extends intothe folding path .15 at the upper end thereof. As may be seen in FIG. 5,the stop member 65 may be supported by a spring 66 mounted against astationary plate 67. As the wrapped article approaches the stop 65 aretaining plate '69 mounted on a lever 70 extending from shaft 27approaches the article from below and swings upwardly at the same time,because, while the gripping jaws are still conveying the articleupwardly, the jaws diverge as the conveyor belts pass over therespective upper pulleys 12. The article resting on the retaining plate69 is moved rearwardly by a pusher 71 on lever 72 mounted on shaft 28.The article is pushed onto a conveyor belt 73 whose upper reach isapproximately horizontal over the wrapping machine. At the forward endof the housing of the wrapper apparatus the conveyor belt 73 extendsaround a pulley 74- which is adjacent the folding path 15. Thecompletely wrapped articles G are then carried away on the conveyor belt73.

With reference to FIGS. 2a and 2b the basic folding operation of thepresent invention as performed at folding stations 1 and 2 of theapparatus in FIG. 1 will next be described. It has already beendescribed above that an article G is moved upwardly by the ram 32against a wrapper blank positioned over the opening 36: and plate 34with the article and wrapper blank H being urged upwardly through thewipe-on brush 45. The wrapper blank H is thus positioned over the topand all side faces of the article G which is substantially square inplan section. The edge or margin portions R of the blank H protrudedownwardly beyond the bottom face of the article. As the article Gtogether with the wrapper blank I-I pass upwardly through the wipe-onbrush 45 the brush extension 46 holds fast the downwardly protrudingportions R of the wrapper blank during the upward movement until thearticle G and blank H have been gripped by the lowermost drivers 18 inthe folding path. In this way, the article G is prevented from beingthrown out upwardly when the lifting ram 3 2 is suddenly stopped at thelimit of its upward movement. During the folding operation the article Gis moved upwardly from its initial position A at the first foldingstation to an end position E. During this upward movement the article Gand the wrapper blank H are held by oppositely disposed drivers 18-. Theupward movement is apparent only in FIG. 2a and is not apparent from thetop plan view in FIG. 2b.

At folding station 1, the edge portion R which could be nearest the.viewer as seen in FIG. 2a is folded against the bottom face of thearticle G.

In position A, the folding member 50 is still outside of the article Gas will be apparent from the top plan view at position A in FIG. 2b.When viewed in a front elevation in position A the folding member 50 hasnot yet moved under the article G. The folding member 50 is nowdisplaced along the shaft 52 to the edge portion R which is to befolded. Because the article G is moving upwardly, the folding member 50must be pivotally moved upwardly to follow the article. In position B,the folding member 50 has just begun to contact from the outside theedge portion R which is to be folded so that the edge portion R has notas yet been moved relative to the article G in position B.

As the upward movement of article G continues, folding member '50 movesunder the article (position C) and begins to fold the edge portion R Atthe same time, the folding member 50 continues to move upwardly towardthe bottom face of article G. In position D, the folding member 50 haslaterally moved almost completely under the article G and in its upwardpivotal movement has almost reached the bottom of the article. Inposition E, the folding operation has been completed for the first edgeportion R which is now folded fiat against the bottom face of thearticle.

It must be borne in mind that the shaft 52 does not change its position.For purposes of illustration only, the shaft 52 is shown five times foreach of the five positions A to E. The upward movement of the conveyedarticle G is also exaggerated for purposes of clarity. In the top planview of FIG. 2b, the article should only appear once in positions A toE. However such a drawing would not be clear so that five separaterepresentations have been provided in the drawing.

In a similar manner, the edge portion R opposed from R is folded againstthe bottom face by the folding member 55.

At the third and fourth folding stations the folding operation of thewrapper margins R is somewhat different since these folds are carriedout by the horizontally displaceable fold members 21 and 22. Afteremerging from the second fold station, fold member 21 is displacedtoward the right into the folding path by its follower which is guidedin the cam groove 24. The folding member 21 is thus moved horizontallytoward the right to fold wrapper margin R against the bottom face of thearticle. After wrapper portion R has been folded against the bottom facethe folding member 22 on the right in FIG. 1 is displaced to the left bythe cam track 25. This movement will fold wrapper portion R againstportion R which has already been folded against the bottom face. Thecontinued upward movement of the conveyor belts and the gripper jawswhich carry the horizontally displaceable fold member 22 will thusretract or move the fold member to the right away from the folding pathto permit retaining plate 69 to come underneath the wrapped article.

The article is now conveyed further upwardly so that it is carried bythe retaining plate 69 and pushed out by pusher 71 onto the conveyorbelt 73 upon which the wrapped articles are removed from the wrappingappartus.

While the conveyor belts 11 carrying the drivers 18 are continuouslydriven at a constant speed, all other movable components of the wrapperapparatus as described in FIG. 1 operate intermittently with a cycletime which is equal to the time interval between two drivers moving pasta given point on the folding path. As a result, an article is introducedbetween each pair of opposed drivers and the required folding operationsare performed upon this article.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show a modified arrangement of the folding members 50 and55 and of the structure for controlling them. The folding member 50 isrigidly secured to a collar 95 which is rigidly mounted on a shaft 96.The shaft 96 is rotatably and axially displaceable in a bearing block 97which is positioned laterally outwardly of the folding path. The collar95 and the first folding member 50 are shown in FIG. 6 on one side ofthe folding path and the second folding member 55 is mounted on abushing 98 on the other side of the folding path. The bushing 98 isfreely rotatable upon the shaft 96 but is fixed against axial movementby set collars 99. The shaft 96 is axially displaceable by means of arod 100. The arrangement is such that in one position to which the shaft96 is displaceable one folding member 50 is positioned under an articleG in the folding path and in the other position to which the shaft 96 isdisplaceable the other folding member 55 is disposed beneath thisarticle.

To carry out this displacing of the folding members 50 and 55, thecollar 95 is pivotally connected by a connected rod 101 to a stationarypivot 102 and the bushing 98 is pivotally connected by a connecting rod103 to a stationary pivot 104. As the rod 100 and shaft 96 are displacedaxially the collar 95 and the bushing 98 with their respective foldingmembers 50 and 55 will be pivotally moved around the shaft 87. In theleft hand end position as shown in FIG. 6 folding member 50 is just incontact with the bottom face of an article G while folding member 55 hasbeen retracted and swung out so as to be positioned completely outsideof the folding path. After displacement of the shaft 96 to the other endposition, folding member 50 will be retracted and swung out of thefolding path and the folding member 55 will have been moved laterallyinto the folding path and pivoted upwardly under the article G which inthe meantime has continued its upward movement by a distancecorresponding to the vertical spacing of the two folding members 50 and55 when they have been swung inwardly. In FIG. 7 the connecting rods 101and 103 have been shown in relatively off-set positions for purposes ofclarity. These connecting rods could be replaced by stationary camtracks engageable by the collar 95 and the bushing 98 as these twoelements are displaced longitudinally.

It is to be noted that in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 thefolding members 50 and 55 move oppositely with respect to each other.The stroke of these folding members during their inward and outwardpivotal movement depends on the adjustable length and the arrangement ofthe connecting rods 101 and 103. Both connecting rods have been shown asprovided with means for adjusting the length thereof. Since the twofolding members 50 and 5,5 are controlled by a reciprocable rod 100which may be driven by the linkage, this structure is considerablysimplified. The folding operations may suceed each other in shorterintervals. During each cycle of the intermittent movement the twofolding operations are performed upon the article G in two successivevertical positions thereof.

A similar arrangement for moving folding members may be adopted for theother folding members 80 and 81 as shown in FIG. 5.

The apparatus as described above is primarily intended to perform afolding operation wherein the wrapper blank was initially positionedover the top and all side faces of the article. However, the presentapparatus with some modification can also be employed to performthe'folding operation wherein the wrapper blank is initially placed overthe top face and two opposed side faces of the article. The end faces ofthe article remain exposed as shown in position A in FIG. 8. In thisfolding operation only two edge portions R extend downwardly and two endportions St protrude laterally from the top face of the article G. Theseveral stages of the folding operation are illus trated from A to F inFIG. 8 and the apparatus for performing this folding operation isillustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10. FIGS. 9 and 10 have been drawn toillustrate only those components which differ from the apparatus shownin FIGS. 3 to 7.

The apparatus of FIGS. 9 and 10 similarly comprises a pair of spacedconveyor belts 11 but, for purposes of clarity, these belts are notillustrated in the drawings. The belts are provided with gripper jaws 16and 17 and mounted to each of the gripper jaws are guide members 105.The folding members 21 and 22 are slidably mounted in these guidemembers. The ends of the folding members remote from the articles G andthe folding path 15 are provided with the guide rollers or followers 23which engage cam tracks or grooves 106 and 107. The cam grooves 106 and107 are disposed on the front face 26 of the apparatus similar to thecam grooves 24 and 25 of the apparatus of FIG. 1 but are shaped somewhatdifferently therefrom in a manner to be presently described. As can beseen in FIG. 9 the cam grooves 106 and 107 are stationary and extendupwardly and are disposed laterally of the folding path.

In order to fold the lower sub portions Str of the end portions St ofthe blanks H as shown in FIG. 8, there are provided folding members 110and 111. Folding member 110 is mounted on a shaft 112v which ispivotally and longitudinally movably mounted in a guide member 113.Similarly, folding member 111 is mounted on shaft 114 which is pivotallyand longitudinally movably mounted in the guide member 113. The guidemember 113 is located laterally of the folding path 15. The longitudinaldisplacement of the shafts 112 and 114 may be carried out by a commondrive means which alternately reciprocates the shafts. A pivotalmovement of shafts 112 and 114 may be imparted by means similar to thosedescribed in the structure of FIGS. 6 and 7 wherein connecting rods wereused.

Further along the folding path and above folding members 110 and 111 arepositioned movable jaw-like lateral end folders 120. These end foldersare positioned on the right and left of the folding path as seen in FIG.9 and operate to fold the lateral sub portions Sts of the end portionsSt of the blank H. The movement-of the end folders may be derived fromthe folding members 110 and 111. As shown in FIG. 9, the end folders-120are mechanically coupled to folding member 110 by a'rod 121 which ispivotally connected to an arm 122 extending laterally from one of theend folders 120. In a vertical central plane of the folding path whichis at right angles to the plane of the drawing in'FIG. 9 the end folders120 are pivotally connected at 123. I

A similar pair of end folders 120 is positioned. on the other side ofthe folding path as viewed in FIG. 950 as to act on the opposite endface of the article G.-All four lateral end sub portions Sis are thussimultaneously folded into engagement against the end faces of thearticle G in position E during the upward'movement of the fold-. ingmember 110. i

Additional stationary folding members 125 may be positioned above thelateral end folders 120 and onboth sides opposite the end faces of thearticles G as they move upwardly in the folding path from position E. As"the articles move upwardly, the upper sub portions Sta of the endportions St are contacted by the stationary folding members 125 to befolded against the end faces of the article as shown in position F.

As may be seen in FIG. 9, the cam track 107 which controls thetransverse movement of the right hand folding member 22 is shaped toreturn the folding member 22 to its initial position after the foldingmembers 110 and 111 have folded the lower end sub portions Str as inpositions D and D After these sub portions have been folded, the edgeportions R cannot spring back so that they need no longer be retained intheir folded position by the folding member 22. During the movement ofthe articles through positions D and D the cam track 107 is so formedthat the right hand folding member 22 remains held under the article Gafter the portion of the wrapper has been folded in position C. Thispresence of the folding member 22 is desirable to prevent any springback of the folded edge portions during the subsequent foldingoperations performed at the end faces of the article G. Since thefolding members 21 and '22 move upwardly concurrently with the upwardmovement of the articles G there is no need for any control structurefor moving the folding members 21 and 22 to the bottoms of the articlein the direction of travel thereof.

During the operation of the apparatus of FIGS. 9 and to perform thefolding operation illustrated in FIG. 8 the guide rollers 23 will enterthe lower end of their respective cam tracks 106 and 107 as theirrespective drivers grip an article G and its wrapper blank Htherebetween. As the article G moves upwardly left hand folding member21 is first displaced under the article G to fold the left hand edgemargin R against the bottom face of the article as in position B. Theright hand folding member 22 then becomes effective and is displaced bythe cam track 107 to the left to fold the right hand portion R againstthe bottom face of the article G in a manner as shown in position C.

The folding member 22. remains in contact with the bottom face of thearticle G as the article continues to move upwardly.

The folding members 110 and 111 then fold the lower sub portions Str ofthe end portions St against the end faces of the article G. This foldingis accomplished by a simultaneous axial displacing and pivotal movementof the respective folding members as indicated by the arrows in FIG. 10.The folding member 110 is operated first as shown in FIG. 10 and the subportions on the other side of the folding path are then folded by thefolding member 111 as in the position D and D As the article G continuesits upward movement all four lateral end sub portions Sts aresimultaneously folded into engagement with the end faces of the articleG as shown in position E.

The article is completely wrapped in position F after the stationaryfolding members 129 have folded the upper sub portions S10 against therespective end faces of the article G. The completely wrapped articlemay now be removed from the folding path by a stop member and pusherarrangement together with a conveyor in the manner as described above.

It is pointed out that in the structure illustrated in FIG. 9 thearticle G is moved upwardly a distance a when the main driving shaft andthe crank 86 complete one revolution. Therefore, a cycle of theapparatus corresponds to a distance a as travelled by the conveyorbelts. During movement through the distance a, the folding members 110and 111 are reciprocated once. The movement of the folding members 110and 111 in one direction corresponds to a distance of a/ 2. For thisreason, the folding members 110 and 111 are vertically spaced a distancea/ 2. The same arrangement may be employed if the folding members 50 and55 illustrated in FIG. 1 are used.

In a further modification of the wrapper apparatus of the presentinvention there may be provided a vertical folding path through whichthe articles are conveyed downwardly with the folding path and thegripping jaws being shifted into a horizontal direction in the latterportion of the folding path. In such a modification the folding membersfor the last edge portion of portions R and/or sub-portions St of theend portions may be provided in the horizontal portion of the foldingpath. Known structure may be employed to change the direction of travelof the conveyor belts and the gripping jaws mounted thereon from avertical direction to a horizontal direction. Since the articles are nowmoving horizontally at the discharge end of the folding path, thewrapped articles may simply be released as the gripping jaws are movedapart to be placed upon a conveyor belt moving in the same direction. Asa result, additional control transfer devices are not required in thismodification.

Thus it can be seen that the present invention has disclosed a mostcompact apparatus for wrapping articles and comprises relatively fewparts which are driven or separately controlled. A previously knownapparatus for performing the same wrapping operation had a weight of800-1200 kilograms with a capacity of about Wrapped articles per minute.A wrapping apparatus according to the present invention would weighabout 200250 kilograms and have a capacity of 200 articles per minute.Further this apparatus would have relatively small dimensions so that aplurality of similar units can be mounted beside each other on a benchstructure. Where such wrapping apparatus is employed in automaticproduction lines the articles which may include chocolates and otherforms of candy can be wrapped by apparatus which are closely spaced onebeside the other or one behind the other and may immediately succeed themachines for making the articles. Thus the articles are fed directlyfrom the machines for making them to the wrapping apparatus. Thewrapping apparatus then delivers the wrapped articles to furtherprocessing stations such as packaging apparatus.

It will be understood that this invention is subject to modification inorder to adapt it to different uses and conditions.

What is claimed is:

.1. In an apparatus for wrapping an article having top and bottom facesinterconnected with side faces with a wrapper blank, the combination ofmeans for positioning a wrapper blank on the top and all side faces ofthe article with edge portions of said blank protruding beyond saidbottom face, means for conveying continuously a series of articleshaving wrapper blanks positioned thereon along a folding path in adirection normal to the bottom faces of the articles, said conveyingmeans comprising a plurality of gripping means with each gripping meansgripping the same article as the articles are conveyed along the foldingpath, first folding element means along said folding path for foldingedge portions of the wrapper blank around the article, means for movingsaid first folding element means independently of said gripping meanslaterally into the folding path in a direction transverse to themovement of the conveyed articles and transverse to the botom faces ofthe articles in the direction of travel thereof, second folding elementmeans movably carried on said conveying means, and stationary cam meansengageable with said second movable folding element means to move saidfolding element means into said folding path to fold edge portions ofthe wrapper blank.

2. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1 with said folding path beingvertical and said articles being moved upwardly therealong.

3. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 2 with means at the upper end ofsaid folding path for withdrawing the wrapped articles, said articlewithdrawing means comprising a resiliently mounted stop extending intothe path of articles emerging from said folding path and engageable bysaid articles, a retaining plate movable into said folding path toengage the bottom face of a wrapped article, and pusher means forpushing the articles laterally from between the stop and the retainingplate.

4. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1 with there being a plurality ofsaid first folding element means at the beginning of said folding path,there being a plurality of said second folding element means on saidconveying means and movable into said folding path successively aftersaid first folding element means.

5. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1 with said conveying meanscomprising a pair of spaced endless belts in substantially the sameplane with portions of said belts being parallel to define said foldingpath.

6. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1 with said second foldingelement means being slideably mounted beneath said gripping means.

' 7. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1 with said first and secondfolding element means'folding edge portions of the wrapper blank againstthe bottom face of the article.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 10 THERON E. CONDON, PrimaryExaminer N. ABRAMS, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R.

